Save Money On Medicines

Here are some tips on how to save money when you're poorly.

It's easy to forget about Foolish financial principles when you're not well. But the money-saving battle is never over, so hopefully this article will help you keep costs down when you're poorly.

We've visited a large number of chemists to see whether the assistants give you the best advice financially. And we've also looked at the ingredients off some of the most popular over-the-counter medicines and what the price difference can be.

On the shelf

Our research focused on one of the most common ailments suffered - a headache.

We looked at a range of headache mfedicines, what's in them and how much each one costs. We found that products containing exactly the same drug can vary hugely in price.

Here's an example. The following drugs, all sold by Boots, contain a single active ingredient - paracetamol - in the same concentration (500mg). There were 16 tablets/capsules in each box.

Have a look at the differences in price:

And here are the same drugs sold in Superdrug:

None of these drugs contain any other active ingredients (such as codeine, aspirin or ibuprofen).

I tend to assume that "own-brand" products offer the best value - as is the case in many supermarkets. However, as you can see, neither Boots' nor Superdrug's own brands were the cheapest form of paracetamol - far from it.

Of course, manufacturers often point to the fact that their brand is easier to swallow, or deliciously coated, or is a particularly fantastic shape. However, the fact remains you can save £1.93 per pack by choosing the one without the famous name. And according to the NHS, you are perfectly safe buying generic (unbranded) drugs of this sort, as they are clinically identical.

Behind the counter

All the drugs mentioned so far can usually be found on the store shelves by customers themselves --so you don't necessarily need to rely on professional recommendations.

However, lots of the really powerful stuff is behind the pharmacist's counter, so it's not as easy to read packets and compare prices and ingredients. If, for example, you want pills containing the more powerful painkiller codeine, or if you're not quite sure what you're looking for, you're in the hands of the professionals.

We visited 11 chemists (five Boots, two Superdrug, one Lloyds and three independent) and asked a range of questions to find out how pharmacists and their assistants help us spend our money.

Here are the results:

         When asked "what's the cheapest paracetamol you sell?", 80 per cent of advisors did not cite the cheapest. Instead, most pointed to the shop's own brand product, even though a cheaper version was available on the shelf.

I'd like to think this is down to ignorance rather than deception. The Boots/Superdrug brands were invariably displayed most prominently, while the 16p equivalents were often relegated to the sidelines, particularly at Superdrug.

         In every independent chemist we visited, making your own financial decision was difficult because ALL the drugs, including simple paracetamol, were behind a counter and had to be requested.

         If you knew what to look for, many drugs were slightly cheaper in the chain stores. However, the level of medical knowledge generally seemed to be better in the independents. Chain store counter staff -- who were often not pharmacists themselves -- usually had to read a packet to tell us what it had in it. After this, two still couldn't tell us what that active ingredient actually did, relative to others.

All this highlights the fact that to get the best-value product, it's a good idea to do a bit of research first. Obviously this isn't always possible - particularly if you're feeling appalling - and sometimes we all have to rely on the professionals.

However, if -- like me -- you suffer from chronic migraines, investigating your options could save you a packet.

For years, I trotted into Boots and stocked up Nurofen Plus (currently selling at £3.59 for a pack of 16). This was largely based on the fact that I recognised the name and it seemed to do the trick. I finally looked into what was actually in it -- namely 200mg of ibuprofen and 12.8mg of codeine. I then found that Cuprofen Plus was identical in its active ingredient content -- and in Boots cost £3.99 for a pack of 24.

I reckon I buy around 240 headache pills a year -- and therefore could have saved myself £13.95 in the last twelve months if I'd sorted myself out sooner. Of course, rooting around online I might well have saved even more.

Join the club

If you need non-prescription medication for a chronic condition, it's worth investigating the savings offered to Boots Health Club members. The scheme doesn't seem to be publicised much, but it's free to join and through it you can get over 50 health products -- including pain relief -- for half the price you pay in the shop. Superdrug, unfortunately, has no equivalent scheme.

Online

Another option is to buy drugs online.

As Cliff D'Arcy points out in Specs And Drugs And Rock 'N' Roll, buying medicine online, from places like Our Chemist or Express Chemist, is very often the cheapest option.

Free prescriptions

Finally, if you take regular prescription medication, a pre-payment certificate could save you money if you need more than five items in four months, or fourteen items a year.

Many people are eligible for entirely free prescriptions -- if you're on income support, if you're over 60, if you're in full-time education and in many other circumstances.

Of course, prevention is better (and cheaper) than cure, and ideally we'll all be wrapped up warm and fighting fit in the run-up to Christmas.

However, hopefully your bank balance can now stay healthy, even if you don't manage to.